Category: public posts
The select public posts from syn·op·sis, written and reviewed by iSci students at McMaster University. Each post is interdisciplinary in nature, and a wide variety of subject matter is covered. So sit back, relax, and start learning.
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Chemical Analysis of Art: Macro X-ray Fluorescence Scanning
Visual art is among some of the most longstanding and expressive forms of artistic representation. Categorized by a variety of movements and developing alongside individual and social philosophies, art offers an immersive glimpse into human history. However, this contribution of art is predicated on its preservation. As the world of visual art evolves, a prominent…
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Mutt-tastesis; a Discussion of Comparative Oncology
Dogs are much more than man’s best friend, as surprisingly enough, they can provide significant insight into the field of oncology. Many species, both wild and domesticated, have documented cases of developing cancer (Abu-Helil and van der Weyden, 2019). There has been significantly more research conducted on cancer incidence in house pets, as 80-90% of…
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CANDU or CANDon’t? The Controversy of Nuclear Power in Canada
One of today’s biggest issues lies in the lack of renewable resources. Canada has developed nuclear technologies to combat this issue, such as nuclear power plants. However, is it the best solution? Nuclear energy is a form of energy created by nuclear fission. This occurs when the nucleus of an atom absorbs a neutron from…
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The universal language
We have all heard the saying “music is a universal language.” Most of the time, what we draw from this statement is that music is a form of emotional expression shared and enjoyed by all cultures across the world. But to what extent can music really be called a language? Recent brain imaging studies have…
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Broken Climate, Broken Hearts
One of the most important social issues we are bombarded with daily is climate change. But why should we care? Why shouldn’t we burn more fossil fuels, use more plastic, and drive longer distances? Don’t all of these things improve our quality of life? While the impacts of climate change may not be perceived to…
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The Cost of Climate Change in the North
The Arctic is warming faster than any other region on Earth, with some estimates that it is warming over three times the average global rate (Comiso, 2016). While exact numbers may not be common knowledge, the fact of the warming Arctic is not new news; we know that sea ice is melting and that polar…
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A Drug that Cures Addiction to Drugs?
One of the most prominent issues in a first world country such as Canada relates to the abuse of illegal street drugs such as heroin. Thus, any treatments involving drugs are controversial, as addiction is extremely difficult to overcome. In order to gain a holistic understanding, it is vital that this issue be studied from…
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Have we opened the Pandora’s box of genetics?
In November 2018, Chinese scientist He Jiankui ignited controversy in the scientific community by revealing he had edited the genomes of twin embryos known as Lulu and Nana to be resistant to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (Cohen, 2019). Many researchers were horrified that genetic manipulation was performed on a human being. However, He justified his…
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Potent Food Preservation: The Practice of Food Irradiation
A commonly understated aspect of food cultivation and processing is the important role of radiation. While it is known that radiation emanating from the sun or microwaves emitted by household kitchen appliances are useful for heating and maintaining food, the lesser-applied forms of ionizing radiation have equally promising utility. The notion of food irradiation as…
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Plants listen to music too
You may have heard of Spotify for Student, Individual, and Family, but can you imagine “Spotify for Plant”? That’s right. Plants listen to music (Figure 1). Although plants don’t perceive music the same way we do, they are certainly affected by varying levels of sonication. As discussed below, several studies have shown the effects of…